Christmas Songs in the Public Domain (And Those That Aren’T) Christmas Songs in the Public Domain (And Those That Aren’T)
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presents Christmas songs in the public domain (And Those That Aren’t) Christmas Songs in the Public Domain (And Those That Aren’t) The holiday season — a time for family, tradition, peace on earth and some of the year’s highest music consumption. Yep, that’s right. Between October and December, millions of people are searching for new Christmas songs — and they could be listening to YOUR music! Recording a few Christmas tunes is one of the best ways to connect with new listeners who might not have otherwise heard your music. But before you choose the song(s) you’re going to tackle, you should know ahead of time whether or not you need to pay a publisher/songwriter for the right to record their composition. To make things a little simpler for you, CD Baby has created these two handy lists of popular Christmas tunes. Is the song in the Public Domain list? Great, it’s no longer protected by copyright and you can release it without a license. Want to cover a copyrighted song? You can easily obtain the required mechanical licenses from our friends at Easy Song Licensing. Popular Christmas Songs in the Public Domain “Angels We Have Heard “Here We Come A-Caroling “O Come O Come Emmanuel” On High” (Wassail Song)” “O Holy Night” “Auld Lang Syne“ “I Heard The Bells On “O Little Town Of Bethlehem” Christmas Day” “Away In A Manger” “Once In Royal David’s City” “I Saw Three Ships “ “Coventry Carol” “Silent Night” “In The Bleak Midwinter “ “Deck The Halls” “The First Noel” “For Unto Us” “It Came Upon The Midnight Clear” “The Twelve Days of Christmas” “Go Tell It On The Mountain” “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring” “Up On The Housetop” “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” “Jingle Bells” “We Three Kings “ “Good King Wenceslas” “Jolly Old St. Nicholas” “We Wish You A Merry “Hallelujah Chorus” Christmas” “Joy To The World“ “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” “What Child is This” “O Come All Ye Faithful” 2 CHRISTMAS SONGS IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN (AND THOSE THAT AREN’T) Popular Christmas Songs That Are NOT in the Public Domain Believe it or not, these songs (as old and ubiquitous as some of them are) have not yet passed into the Public Domain. The rights for these compositions are still administered by publishers, and a mechanical royalty would need to be paid in order to record and release cover versions of these songs. “All I Want For Christmas Is My “I Saw Mommy Kissing “Rockin’ Around The Two Front Teeth” Santa Claus” Christmas Tree” “All I Want For Christmas “I Wonder as I Wander” “Rudolph the Is You” “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” Red-Nosed Reindeer” “Amarga Navidad” “It’s a Marshmallow World” “Run Run Rudolph” “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot “Santa Baby” “Blue Christmas” Like Christmas” “Santa Claus Is Back In Town” “Burrito de Belén” “It’s Christmas Time All Over “Santa Claus Is Coming “Canción de Navidad” the World” To Town” “Carol Of The Bells” “Jingle Bell Rock” “Silver Bells” (Lyrics Only, Music, “La Fiesta de Pilito” “Sleigh Ride” Public Domain) “La Murga” “Star Carol” “Caroling, Caroling” “Last Christmas” “Star Carol (Classical)” “Chestnuts Roasting “Let It Snow, Let It Snow, “Suzy Snowflake” on an Open Fire Let It Snow” (The Christmas Song)” “The Most Wonderful Time Of “Little Drummer Boy” The Year” “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” “Mary Did You Know” “This Christmas” “Christmas Time is Here” “Mary’s Boy Child (aka Mary’s “We Need a Little Christmas” Little Boy Child)” “Christmas Waltz” “What Are You Doing New “Mele Kalikimaka” Year’s Eve?” “Do You Hear What I Hear” “Merry Christmas Baby” “When A Child Is Born” “Feliz Navidad” “Merry Christmas Darling” “When Christmas Comes “Frosty The Snowman” “Mi Regalo Favorito” To Town” “Grown-up Christmas List” “Navidad Blanca” “White Christmas” “Have Yourself a Merry “White World of Winter” Little Christmas” “Navidad Feliz (Jingle Bells)” “Winter Wonderland” “Here Comes Santa Claus “Navidad, Navidad” (Right Down Santa Claus Lane)” “Noche de Luz” “Ya Llego la Navidad” “Holly Jolly Christmas” “Pretty Paper” “You’re a Mean One Mr. Grinch” “Home For the Holidays” Sources: http://www.pdinfo.com/ http://www.copyrightsolver.com/ 3 CHRISTMAS SONGS IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN (AND THOSE THAT AREN’T) Please note: This information is correct to the best of our knowledge, but you are ultimately responsible for securing the rights for any copyrighted material you cover. In other words — this isn’t legal advice, so make sure you do your homework before selling songs you didn’t write. Release Your Christmas Song About CD Baby CD Baby, the world’s largest digital distributor of independent music, is a company run BY musicians FOR musicians. We’ve paid out more than $850 million to DIY artists all over the world. From our humble beginnings in 1998 as a small, one-man operation in a garage, to our current standing as one of the most trusted names in independent music, we’ve developed a host of services to help artists, including physical and digital music distribution, warehousing and shipping of CDs and vinyl, YouTube monetization, worldwide publishing administration, and more. Become a CD Baby artist today! www.cdbaby.com 4 CHRISTMAS SONGS IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN (AND THOSE THAT AREN’T).